Rainbow City

The mayor leaned deeply back against the sofa, still looking unconvinced.

“Do you really think having those perverts — ah, I mean, those LGBTQ people — move to our city will actually help our population recover?”

“Do you recall when one of Tokyo’s 23 wards issued certificates to same-sex couples recognizing their unions as equivalent to marriage?”

“Oh, yes. That got quite a bit of media attention.”

“We need an impact comparable to that. Otherwise, in this day and age, no one is going to want to move to a city like this, where commuting to the metropolitan center for work or school is inconvenient.”

The mayor reluctantly agreed to the proposal and submitted the draft ordinance to the city council. As expected, a chorus of objections arose during the regular council session.

A male council member in his seventies — the leader of the largest faction — spoke up first.

“Wouldn’t doing something like that disrupt public morals in our city? It’s bound to have a negative influence on upstanding citizens, isn’t it?”

Glancing at the cheat sheet the consultant had given him, the mayor replied with an air of feigned confidence.

“First, I would like to make a request of all the council members here. Please refrain from using terms like ‘wholesome’ or ‘normal’ as antonyms for ‘LGBTQ’ from now on. In this council, we will standardize the antonym for ‘LGBTQ’ to the term ‘heterosexual.’”

The mayor then placed a thick stack of documents on the podium and began to speak, addressing the council members as if delivering a formal speech.

“I will distribute these materials to you all later, but statistically speaking, there is no evidence that the incidence of crime, illegal acts, or other problematic behavior is higher among LGBTQ individuals than among heterosexuals. In fact, there are even indications that the rates might be lower.”

Next, an elderly female council member asked for the floor.

“Even if the number of gay and lesbian residents increases, the birth rate won’t rise, and the population won’t grow either, right? After all, they can’t have children, can they?”

The mayor replied with an expression that suggested he had been waiting for that very question.